


Bad boy, A-Cheng

by azureqingge



Category: Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation, MDZS, Mo Dao Zu Shi, The Founder of Diabolism, 魔道祖师 - 墨香铜臭 | Módào Zǔshī - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
Genre: Alternate Ending, M/M, MDZS - Freeform, Mo Dao Zu Shi - Freeform, NSFW, Smut, Yaoi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-21
Updated: 2020-12-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:56:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 19,905
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28215828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/azureqingge/pseuds/azureqingge
Summary: “I know it’s in the past,” he says slowly, “but I want you to tell me everything.”
Relationships: Lan Wangji|Wei Wuxian, jiang cheng|wen ning, jiangning
Kudos: 32





	Bad boy, A-Cheng

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MDZS](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MDZS/gifts).



Careful not to step on some dried leaves and twigs, he makes his step as light as possible while also making sure the group does not leave him behind. Noticing the group had stopped, he cautiously sweeps a branch away from his face, hearing another heated argument he half-expected would happen along the way.

“So, what are you gonna do? Tell your uncle? Call your dog?” Lan JingYi snaps.

Jin Ling clenches his fist, unable to answer with what’s left of his energy restraining his welling anger. Gritting his teeth, he exhales sharply, glaring at the other as if doing so would kill him.

“Let’s not fight. We can settle this like gentlemen,” Lan SiZhui interrupts, stepping in between them.

As he suspected, the same people were involved. Lan JingYi and Jin Ling were fighting again and as usual, Lan SiZhui was there to appease the two while the others stand by and watch.

“Gentlemen? Then, how do you settle matters with a young mistress—" Lan JingYi remarks and at the same time, it was accompanied by the sharp sound of metal unsheathing.

“Is there a problem with your eyes? Want me to poke them out for you since they’re just as useless as you are?!” Jin Ling yells at him, charging towards him.

Lan SiZhui, aside from having a calm and resolute personality, was their senior for almost three years. He knew how to deal with such impulsive attacks borne of anger. He sidesteps the attack and grabs ahold of the other's wrist while also putting pressure on it. The GusuLan Sect was famous for having disciples with incredible arm strength. He dropped his sword.

Wen Ning, who was ready to leap out of his hiding place, halts himself. Since SiZhui flawlessly stopped the brewing battle, he should not interfere and further agitate it, especially with Jin Ling present. Saving his life did not mean that the fact that he was the one who killed Jin ZiXuan changes.

“Young Master Jin. I believe I mentioned that we could settle this with words?” Lan SiZhui calmly says, dropping Jin Ling's wrist.

Jin Ling picks up his sword, glaring at him as well. He thought, _I shouldn’t have participated in this night-hunt. With such amateurs like them, we’d definitely end up either empty-handed or in danger._

Lan SiZhui slowly breathes in, his gaze lowering slightly, as though Jin Ling's expression just told him exactly what the other was thinking. And he wasn’t wrong in guessing so.

Wen Ning’s head droops, apparently getting the same message as SiZhui. Wei WuXian had told him countless times that Jin ZiXuan’s death should not be blamed on the weapon, but on the master instead, being the one who lost control. Still, he could not help but feel that if it weren’t for him, Jin Ling would not be suffering the undying criticism of ‘having no parents to teach him’. Maybe this was to blame for some faults in his character, with the people around him always forcing his hand to prove himself.

Being the leader of this night-hunt, Lan SiZhui was excited when he invited Jin Ling, thinking he may be hurtful with his words but actually kind when it comes to his actions. Everyone understood that Jin Ling had a temper but wasn’t exactly the brat they thought he was. Lan JingYi didn’t oppose the idea of inviting him, but he didn’t let SiZhui do so without a piece of his mind, saying wanting to be friends with him and feeling sorry for him because he had no friends were two different things.

But Lan SiZhui invited him anyway, thinking it might be a good opportunity for both parties to cool off and reconcile, but the opposite happened contrary to his wishes. Here he was, in the middle of another argument.

Lan JingYi, easily seeing through Lan SiZhui with even the slightest shift in movement or expression, happened to catch him make a face. He glared at Jin Ling, “You! Your temper's getting worse by the second! Not once but twice did you treat SiZhui like that even though he was just being nice to you! You wouldn’t even be here if he didn’t insist on inviting you!”

“I didn’t ask to be invited!” Jin Ling blurted.

“Why you—" Lan JingYi takes an angry step forward. _He can’t even be honest with himself! If he didn’t want it, he wouldn’t have come!_

SiZhui restrains JingYi. “Let’s just get this over with. Shall we?” he changes the topic. Wen Ning understood that SiZhui would not let this argument get out of hand and let the two injure each other before their prey even appeared.

Just as he was about to change locations, looking to his side, he catches sight of the leaves below him enveloped by a soft purple light that quickly intensified. He quickly turns around, just enough to see a section of a long, dark purple object closing in on him faster than his reflexes.

The next thing he knew was his back hitting a surface, shards of rock flying everywhere, as well as smoke filling the air, impairing his vision before it settles down. Feeling no pain, the first thing he sees is the sky dotted with millions of white with borders of leaves and branches. He looks down, then his sides, assuming he crashed into some rock or something.

“G—Ghost General?” one of the disciples near the crash site reaches out to him with a trembling hand.

Wen Ning’s relationship with the other disciples have been well, except for Jin Ling, and he had Lan SiZhui to thank for it since he was the first to approach him without the malice or hostility that his reputation earned him.

After Wen Ning took the blow that was meant for him and Jin Ling, he somewhat became reluctant to hate him. This was mostly due to Jin Ling, his only nephew, whose life he valued more than his own. Earlier, while he was sneaking up on them, a dark shadow moved behind a pile of bush, which he struck before even examining it carefully. Jiang Cheng steps out of the bushes.

Lan SiZhui runs to Wen Ning, helping him up with both hands before he looks up at Jiang Cheng, “Sect Leader Jiang—"

“I didn’t know it was him. He startled me,” Jiang Cheng answers the question before it came, retracting Zidian. He was honest, but somewhat lacked the remorse SiZhui was looking for. Still facing the two, his eyes glance over at Jin Ling. Seeing how his nephew had already drawn his sword, he squints his eyes a little. “You drew your sword because you heard us fighting?”

Glancing at Wen Ning, Jin Ling scrunches his brows, unable to read his uncle’s thoughts, “Huh? No.”

Jiang Cheng's expression worsened, “Then, who were you fighting with?”

At the same time, Wen Ning told SiZhui, “I’m fine.”

Lan SiZhui stood after Wen Ning wordlessly dusted off his clothes.

Jin Ling only caught up to what his uncle wanted him to answer. _Was he being bullied?_ He delayed his answer, wondering what he should make of it but in doing so, only confirmed Jiang Cheng's suspicion.

“Who was it?” his voice drips with anger, sweeping his eyes briefly at the disciples.

“It was me,” Lan SiZhui answers. “We were having an argument about my leading the night-hunt.”

It was true. The argument was due to Jin Ling being absolutely displeased with how he led the group, which pissed Lan JingYi. To some extent, Jiang Cheng was ready to let it pass since the answer was respectful and honest, that it might even be Jin Ling’s temper that was to blame, until—

“SiZhui!” JingYi snaps at SiZhui, not tolerating such actions.

Jiang Cheng raises a brow, his instinct drawing his attention at the right person. “Really? It wasn’t this one?” he stares pointedly at JingYi. If anyone would pick a fight with Jin Ling, he basically looked the type with his temper mirroring the other’s.

Seeing that it was too late to follow up with excuses with JingYi giving them away, Jin Ling caught SiZhui begging him with a gaze, and so he did. With the other boys having no intention of interfering, he could basically say whatever he wants, including words that would redirect Jiang Cheng’s fury to SiZhui who could counter it instead of JingYi.

“Lan SiZhui calls himself the leader, but look at how he does things,” Jin Ling starts, not directly answering his question. “Anyway, I drew my sword to show them who’s boss. It’s not like they’re much of a threat.”

Wen Ning understood the meaning of their gazes and was quick to stop Lan JingYi who misses it, even forgetting Jiang Cheng was there, “That young mistress! Who does he think he is?! Always making trouble for others as soon as his temper calls for it!” he blurts out.

“Shh—calm down,” Wen Ning pats his shoulders, trying to calm him down. He avoided talking too much and his voice was a whisper, almost afraid that Jiang Cheng would hear him.

Jiang Cheng dismisses his mistaken suspicion of the disciples bullying Jin Ling, seeing that his nephew’s choice of words was still the same. Apart from that, he was invited in the first place, meaning the disciples here enjoyed his company, if not for the apparent misunderstanding between one of them. But when Lan JingYi spoke up, Jiang Cheng concluded that it must be some petty fight, given how Jin Ling often talked back to him.

He had mixed feelings, though, with Lan JingYi’s statement being both insulting and funny at the same time because he wasn’t the only one who noticed. After all, it was not only true, but it came from his own mouth as well that Jin Ling has a temper of a young mistress. That whenever he chides him, he was always quick to run away and put himself in danger, leaving him in a frenzied panic.

But, as Jin Ling's uncle and current sect leader of the YunmengJiang sect, he had to feign anger to at least give his nephew some face. He managed to put up an angry face behind one on the verge of laughter, his voice low, “Watch it.”

JingYi felt electricity run up his spine, immediately shutting his mouth. Lan SiZhui speaks up, “Sect Leader Jiang, I’ve been meaning to ask. What brings you here?”

It was Jiang Cheng's turn to be speechless. His eyes steal a glance at Jin Ling, who was now raising an eyebrow at him. He decides to use his position instead, “What I came here for has nothing to do with you.”

“Are you following me?” Jin Ling clicks his tongue.

Before Jiang Cheng could answer, everyone's faces changed. A huge amount of dark energy emerged from within the cave, and it was coming fast! The killing intent was abnormally huge. The boys backed away from the cave.

Lan SiZhui draws his sword, instructing the boys to surround the cave at a distance. Wen Ning was on guard as he steps forward in front of the boys. Jiang Cheng's face twists but whether Wen Ning or the creatures that were about to come out have caused it was unknown. With a flick of his wrist, Zidian turns to a whip with purple sparks snaking around it.

“Work in pairs!” SiZhui shouts, reminding them of his tactics earlier on. After all, attacking in pairs would be safer and easier. If one would distract the prey, one could attack and disable it. If one was injured, there definitely would be a person to carry him away from danger while the remaining would continue.

It wasn’t that Lan SiZhui didn’t know Jin Ling would be displeased with this. Even though there was no ill-will between the boys and him, of course they weren’t so close as to offer partnership with Jin Ling. There were many factors to consider. First, no one would dare because of his temper. Also, no one knew if he’d even accept the offer. Most of the disciples from the sects weren’t alone, so it was understood that those who came with their friends would be partners already. Jin Ling was the only one who came from the LanlingJin sect. Jin Ling's suggestion was to just let the strong ones attack while the others wait or just set up an array or something. SiZhui values the lives and well-being of the people he leads. As much as possible, he didn’t want anyone to return even with a single scratch, so he plans meticulously to guide everyone beforehand.

He thought of all this ahead of time and being a tactful person, he spent time just to come up with a solution. He was planning to ask Jin Ling to be partners with him. There were a few disciples from the GusuLan sect, all of which Lan JingYi had good relations. Leaving him behind just this once would pose no problem at all. Even if there would be adjustments overall, it should’ve been fine since the rest of the disciples get along well.

Jin Ling would definitely be thorny about it at first, but he wouldn’t refuse. He wouldn’t admit it, but it is indeed nice to make friends with one's peers and now would be a good chance when someone outright put the plate in front so one wouldn’t have to ask out of embarrassment. JingYi added firewood to the flame though, like he usually does, making it hard for SiZhui to put it out.

After a few moments, Jiang Cheng was almost sure he could hear growls and hisses in the cave, hidden in its shadow.

“It’s here,” Jin Ling grips the hilt of his sword tight.

“Not… it,” SiZhui's eyes widen.

“Why isn’t it coming out?” a disciple steps forward when Jiang Cheng tells him to back off.

“There are… two of them?” Jiang Cheng speaks, barely making out two pairs of faintly glowing eyes. “Do not act rashly!” he commands. A heavy weight settles in his chest, almost as if it was telling him not to attack first. If it was just him, it would be easier. But with so many vulnerable targets, he would be at a disadvantage if he had to look after every single one.

Lan SiZhui put the pieces together. The killing intent was extremely huge, while the dark energy was the amount of two average monsters combined. From the looks of it, a mid-level cultivator could kill them but how come they couldn’t? Unless… there was something about the monsters that they didn’t know put them at a disadvantage.

“SiZhui!” ZiZhen calls his attention. His eyes sweep briefly around them, sensing the increasing dark energy. They were surrounded by corpses, ones probably eaten by the monsters and others attracted by the dark energy.

_Senior Wei might’ve come in handy, but he and HanGuang-Jun are already dealing with a more serious matter somewhere else._

Still sticking to the plan, the others set on wiping out the corpses. The monsters lunged out of the cave, seeing the scattering disciples. Jiang Cheng shouted, “Jin Ling! Arrows!”

Making sure Jin Ling would attack at a distance, Jiang Cheng runs forwards, catching SiZhui’s gaze and nodding at the same time. Good. The kid was smarter as he expected from his show of calm and composure when they first met. Jiang Cheng takes the left lane and SiZhui takes the right.

“JingYi!” Lan SiZhui shouted. JingYi sent out his talismans, while maintaining the space between them. Sneaking up behind the monster, SiZhui charges with his sword with swift movements. The bull-like beast suddenly changes course towards him, but SiZhui was experienced. He jumps and avoids the bull, using its back to kick away farther. The monster knew some of their attacks and knew what magical tools to avoid. _This might be how the cultivators lost. They didn’t know and weren’t prepared for it._

“The monster is intelligent, be careful!” he shouts. As if hearing him, it attacks again but Wen Ning comes out from nowhere, landing on the monster with such force that it created a crater with rocks flying everywhere. SiZhui sees this as a chance and sends out a talisman to keep it from fighting its way out of Wen Ning, killing the monster afterwards with multiple swords stabbing it.

Jiang Cheng attacks with Zidian, but the monster narrowly avoids it, by running behind a row of trees. As he runs to where it was, the monster emits an air that was dark and ominous, sending a chilly air. At his age, of course, Jiang Cheng was immune, but not the disciple to his right, who was a year or two younger than Jin Ling. Frozen in his place, the hand with which he was holding his sword trembled through his white clothes.

And suddenly, as if smelling the direction of the fear, the monster changes its route, running towards that disciple. Jiang Cheng was closer and seeing the bloodshed that was about to take place, he runs towards the disciple, “Damned brat, do you want to die?!” he screams in a desperate attempt to scare the disciple off or make him return to his senses.

A disciple was behind the monster running opposite his direction. Based on his calculations, he releases an arrow to try and hit the monster, just as Jin Ling finished climbing a tree that intercepted its direction and was just aiming as well.

At the sound of the arrow cutting through air, multiple heads turn in its direction. The only thing he could think of was push the disciple and so, he leaps forward to get him out of the way. The pairs of eyes that were trained on the scene widen in terror, seeing the monster suddenly turn to the right with its snout sticking a bit in the air.

Jiang Cheng feels pain shoot through his ankle, along with something warm and sticky as they drop to the ground. Then, an ear-piercing shriek, “Uncle!”

Just as Jiang Cheng looks up, seeing the horrified expression of the GusuLan sect disciple looking back at him, he smells the metallic scent of blood, and feels the shaking ground cease from moving. Recognizing his nephew’s voice, he turns in the direction of the sound, seeing Jin Ling leaping from the tree and already running towards him.

The next thing he looked for was the monster, in the middle of accelerating in his direction. Sensing a foreboding danger, Jiang Cheng whips his head in Jin Ling's direction. He threatens helplessly, “Get that brat away from me or I’ll kill all of you myself!”

At that moment, what Jiang Cheng feared the most was losing Jin Ling and at the same time, getting himself killed to leave his nephew alone all over again, to be picked on by those waiting in the dark to snatch the throne from him.

A boy from another sect heeds his command and grabs ahold of Jin Ling. The GusuLan sect disciple comes to his senses, locking Jiang Cheng’s arms with his and pulling as far as his feet could allow. But his strength was inferior compared to Lan SiZhui and Lan JingYi, so he could only carry Jiang Cheng at a distance, hoping that little amount would buy them some time for help.

“Stupid brat, run!” Jiang Cheng writhes out of his grasp, pushing him as far as he could, while also trying to stand. He stands but does not run, seeing the blood pooling by his feet. Zidian's light was slowly dimming, so he pulls Sandu out as well.

_I can’t leave Jin Ling yet. Once I die, the snakes will devour him before the day ends._

The monster was close and Jiang Cheng attacks with Zidian first. But the monster accelerates and hits Jiang Cheng to the ground, stomping at him. The first stomp was a miss, but the second one hits him on the shoulder. He grimaces in pain but manages to strike with Sandu, slashing at the monster’s foot, forcing it to lift some of the pressure it was putting on him.

The rest of the disciples were busy with their own battles, some having difficulties due to their low cultivation levels. Jin Ling punches the one holding him, running to his uncle, only to be caught by a stronger grip. Lan JingYi was holding his wrist.

SiZhui and Wen Ning were on their way, running side by side. Jin Ling screams, “Get out of my way!”

“You will only get in the way, let SiZhui handle this,” Lan JingYi says, making it clear that he wasn’t doing this to take revenge on him.

Jin Ling shakes his arm violently, but it wouldn’t budge. He puts his hand on the hilt of his sword but JingYi sees through him and snatches his wrist. He subdues him by holding both his arms behind his back.

“Let me go! If you have a problem with me, now is not the time! Let me save my uncle first!” Jin Ling resists.

As SiZhui and Wen Ning prepare to attack, the monster senses them. It moved its foot from Jiang Cheng's shoulder to stomp at his left leg. Jiang Cheng shouts in pain, cursing at it. The next thing was unexpected. It bit into Jiang Cheng's leg, and dragged him inside the cave.

“Sect Leader Jiang!” SiZhui runs faster, but Wen Ning halts him.

JingYi froze, seeing Jiang Cheng disappear into the cave, and lets Jin Ling wriggle out of his grasp. He, then, feels a force on his left cheek, before he staggers backwards.

“Damn you—" Jin Ling grits his teeth, pulling back his fist to punch him again when two disciples who just finished their business stop him. “I already begged you! What do you want?! Now, my uncle's in there!”

Thinking it would be best to act alone without anyone he had to look after, Wen Ning turns to SiZhui. “I’ll come back with Sect Leader Jiang. The rest depends on you,” he says quickly, not wasting any more time. With that, he leaps into the cave.

“Everyone, stay away from the cave!” Lan SiZhui shouts, assisting the rest of them with the remaining corpses.

Jin Ling manages to escape the two, running towards the cave. Lan JingYi follows him and spreads his arms across to block his way. “SiZhui said no one should go in.”

“Are you expecting me to stand around while my uncle gets eaten?! Get out of my way or I’ll kill you!” Jin Ling points Suihua's tip at his chest.

“Wen Ning will return with your uncle alive. You’ll only make a mess of things if you go in there!” JingYi stands his ground.

SiZhui walks over to the commotion, “Young Master Jin, everything will be fine. Please put down your sword. My uncle will—"

“And what if he returns with my uncle dead?! What then?!” Jin Ling drops Suihua, collapsing to the ground. His head was lowered but one could tell he was crying due to his voice and the sniffling.

Lan SiZhui was unable to do anything but clutch the hilt of his sword. He, himself was only clinging to the belief that Wen Ning would come back with Jiang Cheng alive. As he was thinking this, he hears a noise and sees Lan JingYi, pulling Jin Ling into a hug. The shock petrified him but made him able to see Jin Ling feeling some sort of comfort, resting his chin on JingYi's shoulder. Instead of scolding Lan JingYi, he lets it go. If it calmed Jin Ling to some extent, then he was in no position to oppose it.

Wen Ning enters the cave, following the trail of disturbed dirt on the ground. He leaps forward a few times, finally catching sight of the monster pulling Jiang Cheng by his leg into a hole twice as wide and tall as an average person. There were small clusters of rocks scattered all over the area.

Seeing Jiang Cheng weakly struggling with all his might, Wen Ning guessed that while he was being pulled further into the cave, he must’ve bumped his head against one of the small islands of rocks. The monster senses Wen Ning's difference to the other corpses, dropping Jiang Cheng's leg and letting out a growl, enough to make one's hair stand on end.

But Wen Ning doesn’t feel pain nor fear. Making sure he wouldn’t injure Jiang Cheng, he leaps forward with power that he and the creature both hit the wall of the cave. With time running out and Jiang Cheng almost passing out on the ground a certain distance from them, Wen Ning strikes with his hand, making a hole through the beast's body. When he saw that it was still moving, he gripped both forearms and pulled them as hard as he could in opposite directions. Amidst the silence, aside from the sounds of water dripping, either hitting rocks or another body of water, what was left was the sound of tearing flesh and bones cracking. Wen Ning's face and the front of his clothes were covered with black, gooey liquid as his eyes scan the pieces that lay in front of him, never to walk out of the cave again.

Immediately, he goes to Jiang Cheng, whose eyes were half-lidded. Not bothering to wipe himself, he lifts one of Jiang Cheng's arms, before the other pushes him away.

“Don’t touch me!” Jiang Cheng gasps from the pain, blood dripping from his leg. His condition was unsightly but he didn’t want help, finding it embarrassing that an average monster got him.

“Sect Leader Jiang,” Wen Ning mumbles, his tone sad.

Jiang Cheng was dizzy, “I’m fine.”

“I’m sorry about everything,” Wen Ning mumbles, putting him on his back.

Jiang Cheng wanted to struggle more, but his consciousness drifts away and Wen Ning was having none of his tantrums. His life was more important than worrying about getting a few beatings. He carries him out of the cave. Just as the moonlight hits them both, he hears Jin Ling call out, “Uncle!”

“He’s still unconscious,” Wen Ning says, laying him down on the ground, “His injuries need immediate medical attention.”

Just then, two figures appear, with distinct silhouettes. Wei WuXian and Lan WangJi. They saw the signal firelight a disciple lit up under SiZhui's order. Seeing the mess and eventually, Jiang Cheng who was lying unconscious on the ground with his leg and ankle bleeding, Wei WuXian runs over.

“What happened?” Wei WuXian asks calmly, quickly checking Jiang Cheng's vitals.

Wen Ning briefly explains Jiang Cheng's situation first. Lan WangJi retrieves something from his sleeve and pours the contents in Jiang Cheng's mouth. Then, he presses an acupuncture point at his ankle to stop the bleeding.

“He needs to be taken back,” Wei WuXian rips a piece of his clothing and wraps it around the bleeding ankle. Then, he does the same for the holes in Jiang Cheng's leg. “As for the shoulder, he might be bleeding inside.”

Shortly after, Jiang Cheng was taken back to the Cloud Recesses, which was the nearest and safest place from that site. Wen Ning couldn’t come, but follows them closely, staying near the foot of the mountain.

The day after, Lan SiZhui and the rest of disciples involved in the night-hunt received their verdict, with Lan SiZhui's heavier than all of them.

Jin Ling had talked with Wei WuXian and Lan WangJi briefly the other day when they arrived. Wei WuXian did the talking, explaining that they would visit Jiang Cheng at a certain time of day to play a tune that would help with his healing, to which Jin Ling had no objections. If anything, he was kind of awkward at their show of kindness, after what Jiang Cheng told them at Guanyin temple. Not to mention the words that were still hanging between them.

Jiang Cheng wakes up to the sound of a soothing tune, though his eyes were still closed. His attempt to crack open a sliver was banished the instant he realized the tune was played by two instruments. A flute and a guqin. He doesn’t open his eyes and remained motionless all the while, hoping the two would leave soon.

The tune stops, replaced by a cheerful voice he knew so well, “Well done, Lan Zhan! Now, we better get going. Jin Ling must’ve wanted to spend time with his uncle alone. Quick!” Apparently, he caught a glimpse of him when he left.

“Mnn,” Lan WangJi replies.

Jiang Cheng snorts inside his head, Just how did these two happen in the first place? After everything that’s happened, he asked the question he had been meaning to but was too busy during those times. But there was no one to answer him. These two had a bad relationship from the first time they met, Wei WuXian was too unruly, and Lan WangJi was too serious and boring so how was it possible?

Hearing footsteps, Jiang Cheng opens his eyes a tiny bit, until it widens, coming into contact with a pair of light eyes, emotionless. Wei WuXian was already walking halfway out the door but behind him, Lan WangJi was looking over his shoulder, staring at Jiang Cheng from several feet of space.

Jiang Cheng curses silently, There was no fooling Lan WangJi's senses! He was ready to be discovered, but all he got was a slight nod before Lan WangJi follows Wei WuXian outside. Finally, he breathes a sigh of relief. Although he managed to come into some sort of neutral ground with them, both parties cannot deny that the relationship he had with Wei WuXian in the past was gone. Especially now that he had Lan WangJi by his side. He didn’t understand himself, but he finds it awkward to meet Wei WuXian again under normal circumstances and on top of it, he had to be injured and unconscious.

He slaps a hand to his forehead, all the while making all sorts of scenarios in his head if he ever did bump into the two, and the words he wanted and was supposed to say but never did. He just didn’t have the face to do it.

Meanwhile, Jin Ling finished his scriptures for the day and set out to buy food for his uncle after experiencing the boring and suffocating dining habits of the GusuLan sect made worse by the food itself.

Jiang Cheng fell asleep again some time after he woke up, straining himself from thinking too much about every little thing.

“Uncle,” Jin Ling taps Jiang Cheng’s shoulder.

Jiang Cheng's eyes slowly open and roams the ceiling, before he turns his head, dizzy from sleeping too much. When he sees Jin Ling, he tries to get up, wanting to check if he acquired any injury.

“Careful,” Jin Ling guides him to a sitting position. “You haven’t eaten since last night.”

“How long was I out?” Jiang Cheng asks, putting a hand on his head in pain. He didn’t want to let him know he woke earlier.

“Since just last night, when we arrived,” Jin Ling says, reaching for the box, “The food here is terrible. I know you wouldn’t like it.”

“Where—" Jiang Cheng trails off, remembering Lan WangJi and Wei WuXian before he fell asleep. He'd seen this structure before. And the food was terrible. Judging from the location of the night-hunt before, it was only obvious they’d be in the Cloud Recesses.

“So you know,” Jin Ling says, handing him the box. “Eat up.”

Taking the box, out of nowhere, he remembers going out with Wei WuXian, sometimes with Nie HuaiSang and the others, to eat. But that was in the past. Now that he is a sect leader, he had to eat the food here to show respect. Another thought comes into his mind. Wei WuXian loves spicy food, but he can’t just eat anywhere he wanted because that would reflect on Lan WangJi as well.

“You already missed dinner, so I bought that,” Jin Ling explains, cutting through his thoughts. Relieved that Jin Ling gave him reason to eat food from outside, Jiang Cheng slowly digs in. But Jin Ling follows up, “Uncle… what happened in the cave?”

Jiang Cheng pauses, “I just woke up and you ask me in the middle of eating, you stupid brat. And don’t you go running straight to danger or else no more night-hunts for you.” He didn’t have the strength to think about what happened and feel all sorts of negative emotions just yet.

“They already banned us from night-hunting for months—" Jin Ling stops himself from talking back, as though that last part hit him late.

But thankfully, Jiang Cheng was more curious at the person who gave their punishment. “Who?”

“Lan QiRen and Sect Leader Lan, along with the other sects involved,” Jin Ling answers. “We were punished because you got injured and because…” he trails off.

He had not heard the rest of their punishment, but whatever it was, no matter how severe, Jiang Cheng wasn’t surprised. But what did bother him was the unspoken words Jin Ling left. He was too busy thinking about Wei WuXian that he forgot the part about how he got out of the cave. As he ate, he tried to recall the details, his memory foggy. The small fragments of his memory come back, forming an expression of displeasure on his features.

He wanted to deny that what he remembered was a dream, but the fact that he was alive, sitting and eating here proved it wasn’t. Wen Ning got him out of that cave and killed the monster himself. But what he said just after his consciousness slipped was still a blur.

Jiang Cheng’s lips twitch, all other thoughts put on hold. _What did he say?_

“Uncle?” Jin Ling leans, peering closer at Jiang Cheng's pallor.

“I’m done,” Jiang Cheng says quietly, handing back the box with half the food still remaining. His frustration making him lose his appetite.

Jin Ling didn’t pose any objections. As he finished putting away the box, he clutched his sword and climbs on the sofa near the foot of Jiang Cheng's bed. Hugging Suihua tightly to his chest, he closes his eyes.

Jiang Cheng frowns, “Why are you sleeping here? Go back to your room.”

Jin Ling answers, “I’m going to guard you in case you need anything.”

“You’ve already caused me enough trouble as it is! Let me sleep in peace! Get out!” Jiang Cheng spits.

At the sound of Jiang Cheng's angry voice, Jin Ling shoots to his feet, glaring at him, “After I brought you dinner, this is what I get?! Fine! If you need anything, don’t come ordering me around!” he stomps out of the room.

He watches his nephew go. It wasn’t that he didn’t want him to sleep in the same room. In fact, he didn’t mind. Jiang Cheng puts his face on his hands, briefly regretting how harsh he was. Then, stands and walks a few steps to test his ankle. The pain of this degree was something he could endure, as it was already healing. He silently thanks Lan WangJi and Wei WuXian, but not the people who changed his bandages after he arrived in the Cloud Recesses and when he fell asleep in the afternoon, one of them bearing the bruise his nephew left on one corner of his mouth.

Peeking at the corridors, he finds no one. It was already past 9 PM. Jiang Cheng walks briskly towards the entrance of the Cloud Recesses with only one thought in mind, I need to know…

He stands quietly, as if waiting for something or someone to emerge from the shadows. Since he didn’t have a jade token on him, he couldn’t go out and seek it himself.

“Come out,” he says quietly, at the same time, not really knowing if the presence he felt would obey.

Soon, a figure materializes from the shadows. Wen Ning stands opposite him, with the barrier separating them.

Somehow, he knew Jiang Cheng was aware that he was hiding from the shadows. And now that he was called out, he had no choice but to comply.

“S—Sect Leader Jiang,” Wen Ning stammers.

Even though being cold towards him was unreasonable after he just saved his life, still, Jiang Cheng regards him with a cold gaze, used to treat him that way. What was he supposed to do? Thank and hug him for saving his life?

After a moment of silence, Jiang Cheng opens his mouth, “You… got me out of that cave,” he says quietly. But it wasn’t a question. It was more like something someone would say to kill the silence even just for a bit.

Wen Ning felt uneasy, not knowing how to respond. Thinking it would be rude if he didn’t, he mumbles, “Yes.” He wasn’t even looking at Jiang Cheng but at his feet.

“Why?” Jiang Cheng follows right after his response. His tone was cold that one would think it would also translate to 'I didn’t ask for your help' or 'You didn’t need to interfere'. Now that he thought about it, Wen Ning had no reason to save him. If he died in that cave, it was because of his own carelessness. But he wanted to know why.

Wen Ning was torn between wanting to leave and not wanting to rouse Jiang Cheng’s ire, rendering him speechless.

Jiang Cheng continued, “You had no reason to. And… what did you say to me—before I passed out?”

“I’m sorry,” Wen Ning answers after a while of silence, apologizing for his lack of reply, as well as all the things that happened between them.

Jiang Cheng's brows form a crease, “For what?” he asks coldly.

“You do not owe me anything, Sect Leader Jiang,” Wen Ning says, wanting to clarify that he wasn’t asking for gratitude because he saved Jiang Cheng out of sheer will. Thus, he avoided the topic before Jiang Cheng could bring up Jin ZiXuan and use him as tramp card to avoid expressing gratitude. If Jiang Cheng didn’t want to, he wasn’t going to force him. He wasn’t even expecting it.

A weight of uncertainty sits on Jiang Cheng, just like the time when he learned the truth about Wei WuXian. How he was filled with guilt after knowing the circumstances that pushed Wei WuXian and him to opposite corners, one for shouldering everything and him for knowing nothing of the other's sacrifices. Now, as he looked at his brother-in-law's killer, he felt the same thing. “That’s right. I don’t owe you anything,” he laughs, like a maniac. “You’re the one who owes me. Even though you saved me and Jin Ling from Nie MingJue, and now…”

Jiang Cheng knew exactly what it was that Wen Ning wanted to avoid. He was indebted to Wen Ning but the other was also indebt to him in a way, but the latter was weaker in terms of collection. Wen Ning wasn’t the type to shove it in somebody’s face that he saved his life.

“I’m sorry,” Wen Ning repeats, even more quietly, wanting to cry but couldn’t.

“That’s why as long as you exist, as long as you owe me…” Jiang Cheng trails off. _What is it that I want to do?_

He couldn’t admit it, let alone allow the thought to cross his mind, but he did have the habit of doing 'that'. When he learned of Wei WuXian losing his golden core, he didn’t apologize to him without spouting a mountain of hurtful words first, like he wanted to get back at him for hiding such a thing, for breaking his promise and for choosing to protect other people instead of staying by his side. Now, it was Wen Ning's turn. He did not save him twice but thrice; the first time was when he harboured them. He wanted to curse at him, say every possible mean thing he could think of before he thanks him, as if it was Wen Ning's fault he had to express some gratitude and that he wouldn’t let him get away with hearing a nice word from him without taking a blow first.

“Sect Leader Jiang. It is late. You should rest,” Wen Ning speaks, trying to make a polite exit. He was even more worried because of how Jiang Cheng looked: dressed in white trousers and shirt, his colour ashen. If he stayed longer, Jiang Cheng might worsen.

“Who the fuck told you to leave?!” Jiang Cheng shouts at him.

Wen Ning freezes, afraid of fanning Jiang Cheng's anger and making his presence known. He wasn’t welcome here in the first place.

“Why are you still here?” Jiang Cheng stares at him.

A second ago, he was mad that Wen Ning was leaving. Now, he was asking him why he was still here. But Wen Ning knew what he meant. Jiang Cheng was asking why he was still existing now that Wei WuXian and he went their separate ways.

The reason he was still sticking around was because of Lan SiZhui and the other disciples. He planned to watch over them during their night-hunts. But he couldn’t mention SiZhui's real identity or Jiang Cheng might unintentionally hate him as well.

“I still need to watch over them,” Wen Ning answers.

Jiang Cheng squints his eyes, “Not anymore.”

“W—What?” Wen Ning, this time, had no idea what he meant.

Jiang Cheng turns his back on him before slowly walking away. He, himself, did not know what he wanted to do with Wen Ning. He could only walk away now because he was so sure Wen Ning would show up again, for the disciples at least, if not to find out what he meant. He still had not said the word he needed to say to him, after all.

Lying in bed, Jiang Cheng was able to listen to his reason over his emotions. The sooner he gets better, the sooner he gets out. As he looked up at the ceiling with no one to keep him company, he rolls his eyes, Of course the brat won’t come back after I chased him out last night.

Regretting it a little, he hears footsteps. Though he did not understand why, the first thing he did was close his eyes and pretend to be asleep.

“Hm? Sect Leader Jiang is still asleep. Be quiet,” the voice of a young man comes in a whisper.

“Alright, alright,” another voice responds. “What should we do? Wake him up?”

Reluctantly, the gentle voice replies, “No. Let us just change his bandages, then leave.”

“But would that not be rude? He woke up yesterday, did he not?”

“No. What he needs is rest. Let us not disturb him further and just be quick about it.”

Jiang Cheng snaps his eyes open, making Lan JingYi gasp. “Sect Leader Jiang! You are a—awake?”

“Just now,” Jiang Cheng replies.

“We apologize for disturbing your sleep. But we have to change your bandages, Sect Leader,” Lan SiZhui bows.

Jiang Cheng waves him off, failing to see the need to apologize. He pulls his trousers up, letting Lan SiZhui and Lan JingYi do their work. Since they were being punished, he didn’t want it to be much harder than it already was. He wasn’t in the mood to fight and argue about it, either.

Lan SiZhui took over Jiang Cheng’s arm, just as they agreed upon earlier. Lan JingYi was worried that Jiang Cheng wouldn’t let him get closer to him since he insulted his nephew in front of him. And so, the farthest place from his glare and mouth would be his ankle and leg.

As he diligently cleaned the old salve, he doesn’t notice Jiang Cheng’s curious gaze at him. Jiang Cheng studies the boy before him carefully, who was putting fresh salve on his wounds. Right then, Lan JingYi looked like the quiet and respectful boy, not the hot-tempered young man who threw insults at his nephew. He didn’t know if it was because of the clothes or the hair, but he somewhat looked similar to Lan SiZhui. As his eyes settled on Lan JingYi’s face, he notices the bruise on the left corner of his mouth.

“You,” Jiang Cheng breaks the silence, eyes trained on Lan JingYi.

Lan SiZhui was the first to react, gulping by reflex just as his actions stopped. Lan JingYi looks up, a bit nervous to see his angry gaze. The fact that he paid attention to him meant nothing but trouble. Jiang Cheng might not have forgotten what he said to Jin Ling.

“Yes, Sect Leader Jiang,” Lan JingYi responds with composure, successfully hiding the tremble in his tone.

“The bruise. Where did you get it?” Jiang Cheng felt the need to ask.

Lan JingYi’s hand feels for the bruise on his face. He doesn’t answer immediately, finding it weird that Jiang Cheng would ask all of a sudden what his nephew had done to him, Of all the wounds I got, why did he have to ask for this one?!

Seeing his best friend struggle to say it himself, Lan SiZhui answers for him, “Sect Leader Jiang, when you were dragged in that cave, JingYi stopped Young Master Jin from entering, but… Young Master Jin…” he doesn’t continue, finding it awkward to say it himself because it looked like they were telling on Jin Ling.

Jiang Cheng closes his eyes, sighing in relief, “Is that so?” he admits that he had to be thankful to this kid for stopping his hard-headed nephew from getting himself killed.

“Yes, Sect Leader Jiang,” Lan SiZhui says, continuing what he was doing. Following on cue, Lan JingYi wraps Jiang Cheng’s wounds with bandages.

“Fix it. It looks ugly,” Jiang Cheng says curtly, turning his gaze away as if looking at it was too bothersome.

Lan JingYi makes a face, finishing quickly. But Lan SiZhui couldn’t help but smile. He knew Jiang Cheng had seen far worse and couldn’t possibly be disturbed by such a small wound. He understood that this was his way of showing his concern, beneath the frost that covers it.

“We will be leaving, Sect Leader Jiang,” Lan JingYi bows to him and Lan SiZhui as well. Jiang Cheng nods.

As they stepped out of the door, he hears another voice. He looks at the entrance. Lan SiZhui spoke, while also looking over his shoulder, “Yes, Senior Wei. He is awake.” Then, he turns his head to face front again.

Jiang Cheng froze, seeing Wei WuXian’s shadow outlined on the door, and another distinct one that was taller. Wei WuXian’s voice panicked, “Ah, really? I guess we’ll be taking our leave, then!” he lets out a nervous laugh.

Lan WangJi stayed silent, letting Wei WuXian drag him away. Jiang Cheng bites his lip, half-relieved they decided to leave but at the same time, feeling a pang of guilt and sadness that it looked like Wei WuXian didn’t want to talk.

Lan JingYi looks back at him, but quickly whips his head away, as if he saw something he shouldn’t have. It was awkward to see a person who was usually angry show the slightest bit of sadness. But then, it wasn’t also right to just leave him alone like that.

“Let us go feed the rabbits,” Lan SiZhui says faintly, putting a hand on Lan JingYi's back. The latter takes one last glance to which he earned a glare back before he hastily went on his way.

Jiang Cheng still needed more time to heal, but insisted on returning to Yunmeng since the wound may heal on its own there. Lan QiRen and Lan XiChen agreed, but did not allow him to depart until the next day.

On a boring day, Jiang Cheng had received his meals from breakfast to lunch… and they were the same terrible bitterness with a hint of sweetness.

As he prepared to sleep again, wondering how his nephew was, he closes his eyes. Then, his thoughts wandered to the same person again. But no matter how much he made up excuses about cooling it off further before doing something, the more he knew that when the time actually comes, he wouldn’t really know what to say or do… because all he came up with either seems wrong, inappropriate or awkward.

Although he did say 'sorry', it doesn’t change the fact that Wei WuXian went through all that suffering without anyone to lean to. He chased after him, hating him for all the misfortunes he brought upon the YunmengJiang sect. And when he returned, Lan WangJi stood at the place where he should’ve been all this time. It was ironic, though. Lan WangJi was the enemy and he was the best friend. He was his brother. He should’ve seen 'why' it all turned out that way. And Lan WangJi was no different from him, yet he trusted Wei WuXian and was ready to follow him to death, with his name almost ruined and with no one willing to listen.

Jiang Cheng opens his eyes, lashes trembling. He asks himself. _So… why didn’t I?_

Although the storm had passed and he was now living his life with Lan WangJi, Jiang Cheng still wondered what would’ve happened if he did otherwise. He wasn’t the type to just let it go. But where would he get the answers? Lan WangJi?

Jiang Cheng shakes his head. _That guy would never utter a word, let alone explain a year's worth of happenings. How does Wei WuXian even talk to him?_

Then, an idea pops in his head. Aside from Lan WangJi, there was one other person who stayed close to Wei WuXian. And he knows more than Lan WangJi does!

His brows twitch in irritation. Wen Ning. Asking nicely wasn’t his style, but if he ends up scaring him off, then so would the answers he was seeking too. And how would he find him? He didn’t even see him for almost a week.

Just thinking about it made him dizzy. If he can’t find the answers, even if couldn’t accept it, he had no choice. He wasn’t living his current life for only himself. He still had a nephew to look after.

The night before he departs in the morning, Jiang Cheng chooses his peace of mind over the GusuLan sect's rules. After he made sure everyone was asleep, while carefully avoiding patrols, he snuck out of his room. And just like before, he senses the same presence in the shadows. Wen Ning was there.

“Show yourself,” Jiang Cheng says, with a hint of disdain.

Obediently, Wen Ning comes out, making Jiang Cheng start to wonder if he would do anything he told him to. “Good evening, Sect Leader Jiang.”

Jiang Cheng swallows, tilting his head slightly to the side to avoid directly looking at him. “Last time… I said you owe me,” he says. He looked like a child telling his parents about their promise to buy anything first before actually telling them what he wanted so they wouldn’t back out.

“You did,” Wen Ning says, fiddling with his clothes.

Jiang Cheng, “You. Don’t even think about running.”

“I—I won’t.”

“Tomorrow, I will return to Yunmeng.”

“…”

Jiang Cheng looks at Wen Ning after he noticed he didn’t get a response. “Where I go, you will, too.”

“You mean…?” Wen Ning was baffled.

“What part of what I said was hard to understand?” Jiang Cheng scowls. “Fine. You will go to Yunmeng as well.”

“But why?”

Jiang Cheng scoffs, “Don’t think that all is well now that everyone settled down. Do you really think you can just walk away after everything you’ve done?”

Wen Ning doesn’t answer. Of course, he knew at some point that Jiang Cheng would not let the matter go. If he meant going with him, punishment definitely awaited him. Death is also possible.

Jiang Cheng gives him one last glare before he turns around. With his back to Wen Ning, he says in a weirdly calm voice, “I will not kill you because that would be far too easy a punishment.”

Then, he walks away, leaving Wen Ning the assurance that his punishment would last as long as Jiang Cheng lived. Wen Ning walks back the way he came. For days, he did not know exactly why he kept waiting at the same spot. And when the person he was waiting for finally showed up, all that came out his mouth were orders and threats. Despite not wanting any of what happened, Wen Ning was still guilty, but the ones who know of his feelings unfortunately did not include Jiang Cheng.

Jiang Cheng returned to Yunmeng the following day, after staying in his room for hours to avoid Wei WuXian and Lan WangJi. Although he didn’t want to part without at least saying hi, he decided that now was not the best time.

Upon entering Lotus Pier, he runs straight to his office and calls upon his most trusted subordinates. He instructs some of them to guard Lanling while Jin Ling was away. Then, he goes straight to the training field to see to the disciples' training. When all was taken care of, he goes back to his office to read through mountains of paperwork and finish as much as he could before nightfall.

And when the night came, there was still more than half and a lot more making their way into his office. He was not able to check if Wen Ning did follow him but he had his priorities. His eyes were already heavy from working all day while his injuries are not completely healed. When he could not hold up longer, he tells himself that if he continues like this, he won’t be able to do his job too well. And he was one of the people who knew too well the consequences should he miss his work due to illness or injuries he brought upon himself.

For days of repeating his routine, he spent the most hours on his desk. Dipping his brush in ink, he starts writing when he hears a knock on his door.

“Enter,” he says as he wrote.

One of his subordinates tell him the news. Jin Ling's punishment was over and he will be returning to Lanling the next day. Jiang Cheng nods, quickly writing a letter saying he will be picking Jin Ling up tomorrow.

Tiresome as it was, he couldn’t sit around nor take a break for too long. Sometimes, he would even eat his meals on his working desk. Right then, two sects depended on him and Jin Ling barely knew anything about the responsibilities of being a sect leader. And with so many untrusted folks around him, he had to share the responsibilities and avoid any loophole.

“I will be staying in Lanling for a week. I will leave Yunmeng to all of you,” Jiang Cheng says.

“Yes, Sect Leader Jiang,” they answer with a bow.

The next day, Jiang Cheng goes to the Cloud Recesses. He was greeted by the disciples, along with Lan QiRen and Lan XiChen. Insisting that he’d find Jin Ling himself, he makes his way to the residences, spotting a familiar yellow uniform. Jin Ling has his back to him, speaking to a young man in white robes. Since it was their own business, he leans against a tree, unintentionally concealing his presence with the shadows of the leaves as well as the branches. The young man, he thought, looked like the real well-mannered one, since he was as tall as Jin Ling. The funny one was a bit shorter, almost unnoticeably.

 _What am I doing?_ Jiang Cheng sharply breathes in, finding himself craning his neck, trying to catch bits of their conversation from where he was. _What was his name again? Lan… Of course he's a Lan. Lan what?_

He watches the well-mannered disciple hand something to Jin Ling. A jade token. He didn’t know why he was eavesdropping but whatever the feeling inside his stomach was, he couldn’t ignore it. Lan SiZhui bows, then walks away before coming to an abrupt stop. Jiang Cheng's brows twitch. Then, to his shock, Lan SiZhui turns around with a rectangular box. Almost choking on his own spit, he coughs with his sleeve, desperately muffling his voice. Eyes with a hint of red, his face changes into contempt and rage, not because of the box, but because somebody just dared touch Jin Ling's hand with a look that says 'I like you' written all over his face while putting a box, most likely with a hairpin inside. And worse, they were both men!

He touches Zidian with his left hand, until he notices another strange thing. Jin Ling, who should be the first to react violently given his nature, calmly watches Lan SiZhui walk away with wide strides. Then, his gaze drops down on his hand. Jiang Cheng soundlessly walks up to Jin Ling, tapping his shoulder as soon as he does.

“What are you staring at him for?” Jiang Cheng asks, staring at Lan SiZhui thinking, He doesn’t even know he just narrowly escaped death.

“He's giving this to my mother,” Jin Ling shows Jiang Cheng the hairpin.

_So that was why he wasn’t mad… but what’s with his expression earlier? Did I imagine it?_

Jiang Cheng takes the box and opens it, “How thoughtful of him.” Even though his words were kind, his tone was slightly indifferent, perhaps because he was embarrassed that he was wrong when he was about to whip the kid, or because he couldn’t admit that he was touched since it was for his sister or both. “It’s pretty. Did you thank him?”

“He left before I could,” Jin Ling says, mulling over at something else.

Jiang Cheng seals his lips, feeling a weight drop down his stomach. He glances one last time at the shrinking white figure. _It can’t be. This brat can’t be a cut-sleeve or he’ll taste Zidian for the first time._

“We’re leaving. Hurry up,” Jiang Cheng carefully places back the lid and gives it back to Jin Ling.

When they returned to Lanling, Jin Ling heads straight to his room. As much as Jiang Cheng wanted to question him, his time to sleep wasn’t even enough to make up for the amount of work that piled up when he was injured. In short, no matter what, the topic would only turn into a fight and a fight consumes too much time. Who knows? Jin Ling might resort to his habit of disappearing without warning again. And the next time, he might not be too lucky.

At dinner, Jin Ling asked his uncle a couple of things about what it meant to be a sect leader. Even if he knew how things work, he was forced into that position on a whim, and so he had to at least gain some points on the details.

Jiang Cheng starts with telling him not to worry about it too much since he will be guiding him until he understands how it works. Then, he starts with some of the basics, asking a few questions to see if Jin Ling was getting the hang of it.

“Alright, that should be enough for today,” Jiang Cheng puts down his utensils.

“Uncle, I want to attend some lectures,” Jin Ling says casually, even if it was out of topic.

“Where?” Jiang Cheng asks, his expression slightly surprised.

“The Cloud Recesses,” Jin Ling replies, without hesitation.

“Why there?” Jiang Cheng makes a sour face, remembering the boredom, the terrible medicinal soup, Lan QiRen, and his best friend turned lovers with his enemy. Not to mention, that expression that the well-mannered disciple showed Jin Ling earlier told him he should be bothered.

Jin Ling hesitates, not knowing in particular what the sour face was directed at. Then, he slowly explains, “I thought the GusuLan sect's disciples are… advantageous when it comes to knowledge and cultivation.”

“In what ways?” Jiang Cheng almost overlapped with his words, slightly offended as Jin Ling indirectly compared not only the other sects, but also YunmengJiang.

Then, as Jiang Cheng remembered the time, he realized he forgot something too important because he was too busy. Now that Jin Ling mentioned the Cloud Recesses, his muscles tensed. He completely forgot about it since he arrived in Yunmeng! Now, he was in Lanling and he can’t leave even if he wanted to.

“Almost all their disciples have strong arms and back in Yi City, they were better at making inferences,” Jin Ling says.

“Do what you want,” Jiang Cheng strides from the hall, as if he was in a hurry.

Jin Ling returns to his room with a sense of relief while Jiang Cheng runs as soon as he was out of sight. There was only one way to find out. He couldn’t have forgotten about that last part, could he?

He slams the door open, the cold night air hitting the exposed parts of his skin as soon as he sprints out. There were trees in the gardens and plants of all types, casting all sorts of shadows moving with the breeze. He spins around as he walked quickly, his heart already beating so fast. He couldn’t care less about his work now, whether they meet the deadline or not. This issue had been waiting too long. Waited for 13 years up until the present.

Almost hearing his own heartbeat, he could feel anger welling up inside him, both at himself for being too careless and at the person he told to follow him around. A week! Why did he not check and made sure the person knew he still wasn’t finished? Because it looked like he didn’t care anymore and changed his mind after ghosting him for a week!

No shadows separated from their sources. He was about to shout out the person's name in frustration even though he knew it was his fault for suddenly staying in Lanling without a word when his name was called first.

“S—Sect Leader Jiang,” a voice calls out from behind him.

Jiang Cheng whirls around, “You.”

“I—I came here because you told me to,” Wen Ning says in defense, in case Jiang Cheng forgets what he told him the day he left the Cloud Recesses.

Jiang Cheng takes a deep breath, relieved that indeed, Wen Ning was following his orders. Having made his decision, Jiang Cheng walks to him, making Wen Ning take a step back. When he does, Jiang Cheng stops. This one, right here, was his only pass to know everything and if anything, he should start being nice even bit by bit.

“I know it’s in the past,” he says slowly, “but I want you to tell me everything.”

“What?” Wen Ning asks, confused. Not that he didn’t know what Jiang Cheng was talking about when he meant 'past', but he wanted confirmation about which part of the past. Because if he literally meant everything, it would really be worth more than a night or two. With Jiang Cheng's temper and how his slightest movements seem to anger him, would he even last that long?

“Not here. Follow me,” Jiang Cheng walks away and he follows.

He hesitates when he notices they were walking in the direction of Koi Tower and even more when he sees Jiang Cheng either crouching or hiding behind pillars to avoid the guards. He follows him closely, waiting for Jiang Cheng whenever there was no choice and he had to send them away.

“In here,” he slips into a room in a deserted floor, which was closed since no one was occupying it.

Just as Wen Ning enters, Jiang Cheng closes the door and beckons him to sit on the sofa while he distances himself away from him, sitting on the windowsill of the huge room. He almost finds it unbelievable that the man who kicked and whipped him with Zidian would show him a gesture of kindness… for what?

Was this a kind of trap?

Sitting down, Jiang Cheng immediately gets to the point, “Tell me what happened when you met him in Yunmeng.”

The instant he became an average human, his whole world crumbled and all that played in his mind repeatedly was the day the YunmengJiang sect was wiped out in a single night. The fire and eerie silence, the bodies of the young and old in purple uniforms, dirt and blood mixed all over the ground and smeared all over their faces… his mother hugging and kissing him for the last time… and when his father touched his head, the rare gesture he had always been looking forward to made him feel a sense of dread, only to find out that it was the last time. Because his father, who rarely showed him such affection had to do it at such a time, even though at that moment he didn’t want to admit it, he just knew it had to be the last time. When Wei WuXian told him of a way to get his life back, all the years he spent with him to deem himself as one who knows the person well proved to be useless when he failed to see through his lies and was still unable to figure it out after more than a decade until somebody had to provide him the outline. Now, no matter what, he had to know the full story.

Wen Ning understood. He hasn’t gotten over that yet. And now, he’s asking the things that happened during the time he was captured and had his golden core melted.

“I met Young Master Wei in Yunmeng…” Wen Ning starts, slowly, glancing up at Jiang Cheng every now and then.

Eyes closed, head tilted down, Jiang Cheng listened intently, the crease between his brows growing deeper and deeper, his mouth twisting more and more in displeasure. Suddenly, in the middle of the story, his eyes snapped open, bloodshot. In a fraction of a second, with a flick of his wrist, Wen Ning's back hit the wall, making a man-sized dent, fragments of rocks scattering everywhere. The sofa was overturned, a table was split into two, the objects atop it broken on the floor. As Wen Ning slowly fell off the wall, Jiang Cheng walked to him, and landed another hit.

“Are you fucking with me?! When I said ‘everything', what part of it did you not understand?!” he yells.

Wen Ning waited for him to finish cursing for half a minute, before he stood, hesitating to talk. He thought it was wrong for him to think that someone like Jiang Cheng could fix his temper overnight. He buried his temper all over the ground and Wen Ning had to step on one of it because he didn’t look well enough.

Jiang Cheng finally returned to his senses when silence enveloped them. He goes back to the windowsill, glaring at Wen Ning as he raises Zidian's handle, pointing at him, “I want a detailed explanation. Do not miss a single detail.”

Even though his words were simple, Wen Ning still hesitated. It was the same feeling when asked to do something that was in a sense, too much that you had to ask twice if it literally meant that way. Just what did Jiang Cheng mean? Did it include even the little things like what he thought of the moment, what expression was he making when he brought that bowl of medicine over to Jiang Cheng, only to be kicked and threatened… something like that?

Jiang Cheng's grip around Zidian's handle tightened. Wen Ning thought that if he asked Jiang Cheng for confirmation, all he'd get is another hit with Zidian or a curse as an answer. He gave it a shot, starting with the very beginning. “Sect Leader Jiang, you do know I attended the archery conference held by our sect in the past, right?” he starts. He did not expect Jiang Cheng to answer it. It was only an introduction. Extremely careful with his words, he spoke slowly, avoiding and omitting sentences or phrases that might trigger another unintended offense.

Jiang Cheng, however, answered, “I remember.”

“It was that time when… I met Young Master Wei and admired him when he stood up for me and vouched for me even if I could not meet his expectations. When I heard that a siege was brought upon your sect, I went there…”

“…” there was no reply. However, Jiang Cheng's expression told him he was listening, some of the lines of his face finally smoothening.

“… I saw the bodies…” Wen Ning found it hard to continue, with Jiang Cheng looking like he wanted to say something.

And he did. He wanted to say something mean. Something like 'Did you enjoy the blood on your hands?' and the like, but he couldn’t. Because at that time, after the Sunshot Campaign, he was aware that Wen Ning and Wen Qing's branch did not have his sect's blood on their hands. So he had no choice but to shut his mouth and seal off his false accusations.

“… then I saw both of you when…” Wen Ning explains the part when he saw Jiang Cheng and Wei WuXian. It was that time when they came back to Lotus Pier and found out his parents were dead. It matched Wen Ning's statement, which meant that he was not lying.

_So he did see us…_

“Young Master Wei came back after you…” Wen Ning trails off, unsure if it was appropriate to outright say 'after you had your core melted', so he changed his words, “… after you were captured.”

Did he have to say it? Thankfully, he did not because Jiang Cheng knew what happened to himself.

“The reason I… I brought the two of you to the Supervisory Office at Yiling was b—because…” he explains slowly.

This part, Jiang Cheng had not heard yet. He listens intently, his expression blank. But deep inside, where nobody knew but himself, he was already starting to feel sorry for accusing Wei WuXian at that time, saying he switched sides and went to the Wen-dogs. Taking a deep breath, he holds his palm in the air and Wen Ning stops.

“That’s enough for today,” he says, retracting Zidian. He opens the window wide. “From now on, remember this window and come in here at night.”

“Alright,” Wen Ning bows.

“If you run, I’ll find you and destroy you with my own hands. Do you understand?” Jiang Cheng steps aside.

“I—I understand…” Wen Ning says, before he leaps out the window, his silhouette vanishing in less than a minute.

As Wen Ning disappeared into the trees, he takes a glance at the window, but Jiang Cheng already turned his back. It was clear between them that Jiang Cheng asks the questions and he answers them. There were questions he wanted to ask as well, but he was in no such place to do so. One of them being what would happen to him after Jiang Cheng knows everything? Would he be the one to finally burn his corpse into ashes? Would it be too much to ask if he could… turn a blind eye and just let him be? Wen Ning leaped from tree to tree, settling in a place near Koi Tower, asking a question, one that was not for Jiang Cheng. Was it the wrong decision to wait for him that night at the Cloud Recesses and let him make a situation like this?

Every night, it became a habit for Jiang Cheng to listen to Wen Ning’s stories one after another, all the while holding onto Zidian’s whip form. When his features shift even the slightest bit, Wen Ning would pause, repeat the scenes in his head and retell the story with clearer descriptions.

Tonight, he was at the part where Wei WuXian lost his core. The further the story went, the more severe Jiang Cheng’s expression was, the small, red veins in his eyes increasing in number. The more Jiang Cheng’s face grew uglier, the slower Wen Ning was able to tell the story and the worse his stuttering was.

“No one had attempted to transfer golden cores before… because no one was even willing to…”

“…”

“Until… Y—Young M—Master Wei… did…”

As Wen Ning finished the part when Wei WuXian finally convinced his sister, he was interrupted.

Tightening his grip on Zidian, he finally asks, “Did it hurt?”

Hearing the same question from Lan WangJi before, Wen Ning explains everything. But as he described in detail the pain Wei WuXian went through, Jiang Cheng’s body begins to tremble, his breathing worsening.

“S—Sect Leader Jiang,” Wen Ning says, as if testing if Jiang Cheng still wanted to listen.

Zidian struck and Wen Ning was thrown across the room, hitting a low table with a small vase of flowers on it. “Did I tell you to stop?!” Jiang Cheng yells at him, growing impatient. He had work to do, not only in Yunmeng but at Lanling as well. His time was limited.

Wen Ning stands, dusting off his clothes and continuing while all the while wondering why Jiang Cheng wanted to touch an issue that was long overdue.

“Get out,” Jiang Cheng suddenly cuts him off, after he explained how Wen Qing carried out the operation using no anesthetic as this will harm the golden core and was in the middle of explaining the part where Wei WuXian had to be awake while the core was being cut.

“I thought you—‘’ Wen Ning starts, confused as to why he suddenly changed his mind.

“Get the fuck out!” Jiang Cheng screams, his voice broken. Even before Wen Ning could ask, he was aware of the question. And it wasn’t also because he suddenly chickened out from hearing the truth.

“…” Wen Ning didn’t know what it was. He stood where he was, unmoving. If he left now, there was a chance that he would regret it as long as he walked the earth.

“Did you hear me?! I said get the fuck out! You wanna die?! Out! Out!” Jiang Cheng's words were fast, almost hysterical, a finger pointing to the window. His gestures told Wen Ning he was in a hurry. The once handsome and composed face turned ugly in an instant, like how he usually was when angry. But something was missing. The hand which held the Zidian whip remained steady at his side.

Then, all of a sudden, Zidian was retracted followed by a thud.

Like a dam that couldn’t hold any longer, Jiang Cheng’s tears fall on the ground where he knelt. He wails, sounds of despair and hurt filling the quiet room, like he was the one being cut up.

Wen Ning watches the once proud and intimidating presence break down in shambles before him. Jiang Cheng should’ve chased him out by now or forced him out the window with a single hit from Zidian, but here he was, looking down on him wailing like a child. So Wen Ning, thought, Was it too painful that he needed somebody, that it could just be anyone, even the one he hated the most, to be there for him?

“He… loves you so much,” Wen Ning finally says in a quiet voice, when Jiang Cheng quieted down, hoping it would at least lessen Jiang Cheng's guilt.

“I can’t… see him,” Jiang Cheng sobs, voice hoarse.

“He doesn’t hate you,” Wen Ning says, “He didn’t show anything like that.”

It was true. They did not part as best friends, but they did not part as enemies either. And the only time Wei WuXian attacked him first was when he insulted Lan WangJi in front of him. Despite angering Wei WuXian, he still did not use the golden core incident against him.

“It’s exactly because he does not hate me that I can’t see him,” Jiang Cheng wipes the tears from his eyes. He did not have the face to do it. Moreover, even if Wei WuXian did not hate him, he wasn’t even sure if the person wanted to see him, now that he’s happy with Lan WangJi.

Wen Ning hesitates, unsure of what his next words would be without earning another whip. He doesn’t notice the peculiarity of what Jiang Cheng said. Of how Jiang Cheng answered him.

“I’m sorry.”

“Thank you.”

Jiang Cheng looks up while Wen Ning looks down at him, their words overlapping. Wen Ning was more shocked. Never in a million years had he ever expected those words to come out Jiang Cheng’s mouth. His emotions finally stable, Jiang Cheng presses, “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For telling me,” Jiang Cheng swallows first and Wen Ning was guessing he just swallowed his pride. “For saving me. For saving Jin Ling… and...”

He was taking so long that Wen Ning thought it was the end of it, “I take it, we do not have to meet each other again?”

_Am I free now?_

Jiang Cheng’s expression twists, “What does that mean?” he didn’t know why, but a strange feeling suddenly struck him. Like he was offended with Wen Ning's words.

“I mean no offense,” Wen Ning shrinks back, quickly regretting it.

“As long as you stick around for them, whether you like it or not, we’ll see each other again,” Jiang Cheng says slowly. Then, he adds, “Do you want to get away from me that much?”

With how much he loves using Zidian, who wouldn’t?

Wen Ning tries his luck anyway, “If you have no need of me now, I’ll be taking my leave.”

“I didn’t say you can leave. I thanked you but I never said anything about letting you off,” Jiang Cheng says in a chilly voice.

“T—Then, what do you want me to do?”

“Stay here,” Jiang Cheng says.

Wen Ning seals his mouth. _No thanks!_ “There is no need—”

“That’s not for you to decide,” Jiang Cheng lies down on the sofa, closing his eyes. “Lock the door.”

This time, Wen Ning finally caught on to what was bothering him all this time. He walks to the door and locks it. Then, he sits on the sofa opposite Jiang Cheng’s. Jiang Cheng was already sleeping soundly, an arm covering his eyes.

_Sect Leader Jiang is letting his guard down around me?_

Although Jiang Cheng behaved contrary to Wen Ning's expectations, the odd bean himself did not notice it. Wen Ning whispers to himself, “One day… would you be able to forgive me?”

Jiang Cheng was startled inside, and it was about to surface when he feels Wen Ning move away. All along, no matter how exhausted he was, he didn’t fall asleep. Soon, he could not feel him in the room anymore. He opens his eyes and quickly gets up with no need to look around. Instead of getting angry, he sighs and lies back down.

Wen Ning came back the next nights, but sometimes, Jiang Cheng was too busy to stay for long. On other nights, he was alone in the room, and would only leave when it was past midnight with no audience to tell his stories. Today was different.

“It was all a misunderstanding, huh?” Jiang Cheng mutters to himself after letting Wen Ning finish the part about Qiongqi path.

Wen Ning wanted no more than to just run far away from Jiang Cheng but he also considered what the latter said. They were going to see each other again no matter what.

“It was all that Su She's fault and Jin ZiXun,” Jiang Cheng spits. One sign of the improvement of their relationship was that Zidian was in its ring form these past few days.

Wen Ning was sitting quietly on the same sofa, his gaze lowered. Jiang Cheng's eyes all the while were trained on him. He continues, “You look like you don’t really want to talk to me.”

“I—It's not what you think, Sect Leader Jiang,” Wen Ning quickly looks up, seeing Jiang Cheng's handsome face with a cold expression. He misses the way Jiang Cheng said it… and how he looked when he did.

“Then, why can’t you look at me?” Jiang Cheng puts his chin on his palm that was supported by his elbow resting on his thigh. “I’m not even using Zidian.”

Because it would be disrespectful to look at him? That every time he does, Jiang Cheng had to look at him with disgust and contempt? He’d been whipped and thrown across the room on a whim and he’s asking why he didn’t want to talk to him? What does he even want from him?

Jiang Cheng sighs, “Tell me what happened to you.”

“W—What?” Wen Ning couldn’t help but exclaim. He had never told anything that didn’t involve Wei WuXian to him, leaving that part.

“How did you die?” Jiang Cheng repeats, his words more direct.

Wen Ning was counting the time. The time Jiang Cheng had been spending with him these days grew shorter and shorter every time they met, either at Lanling or Yunmeng. Right now, he should’ve been sleeping an hour ago.

His death wasn’t something he wanted to remember. But Jiang Cheng wouldn’t care about his 'feelings' if he had any. Slowly, he says, “Sect Leader Jiang—"

“If you don’t want to talk about it, you can just say so,” Jiang Cheng says.

Wen Ning couldn’t believe his ears. So he gave him a choice? Since when was he ever given a choice? “I’m sorry,” he mumbles.

Jiang Cheng suddenly stands and walks over to the sofa he was sitting on. Out of impulse, Wen Ning moves over, thinking Jiang Cheng might want to sit. But the latter makes a face and with a flick of his hand, a purple lighting flashes in front of Wen Ning. He wasn’t thrown across the room, but rather, he finds himself unable to move.

“If you run, I’ll lock you up,” Jiang Cheng threatens.

Wen Ning looks down, finding Zidian wrapped around him tightly, “I wasn’t running!” he protests. Did he step on a mine again?

“You were about to,” Jiang Cheng sits down, a feet of space separating them.

“I just moved over!”

“Fine, but you’re not getting away from me if you ever think about it,” Jiang Cheng scoots over. He easily found a way to justify his actions when he found out he was wrong.

“It's past 11 PM,” Wen Ning says in a panic, not even knowing why he was 'feeling' nervous.

“You think I don’t know that?”

“Did I… Did I do something wrong?” Wen Ning's tone was desperate, “If not, please let me go.”

“No,” Jiang Cheng reaches out when he fully cornered Wen Ning at the boundary of the sofa. “You will run as soon as I do.”

“I won’t, please! Sect Leader Jiang—" he stops abruptly when Jiang Cheng's fingers settle on his hair, gently working out a few tangles. “Huh?”

“If it weren’t for you… I’ll die without even knowing anything…” Jiang Cheng mumbles, as if he was under some sort of spell and was talking to himself. “If it weren’t for you, I would’ve hated and pursued him all my life…”

“If you regret it, you should go see him,” Wen Ning says, seeing that it was about Wei WuXian.

Jiang Cheng wordlessly runs his fingers through Wen Ning's hair for a while before he says in a low voice, “It’s been… bothering me lately…”

“HanGuang-Jun won’t stop you if you just say you want to talk,” Wen Ning says, in a quick and reassuring tone.

“Not them,” Jiang Cheng quickly corrects him.

“Then, what is bothering you?” Wen Ning then, moves his head away an inch from Jiang Cheng's hand.

“You don’t like it?” Jiang Cheng's expression was hideous, his hand strongly gripping Wen Ning's arm.

“No, I like it! I like it!” Wen Ning exclaims, without knowing what he was referring to. To prevent him from lashing out, agreeing to anything at the spur of the moment was the only solution.

Hearing this, Jiang Cheng's grip relaxes, his expression quite pleased. “If you like it so much, don’t move away.”

Wen Ning freezes. He didn’t want to assume, but no matter how he looked at it, the impossible was happening right in front of him. He doesn’t move, his gaze trained on the person before him, Where did the real Sect Leader Jiang go? This one seems so happy.

Believing the mine wasn’t going to explode, the tension leaves his body. If this could make Jiang Cheng feel a bit positive, then he doesn’t mind.

“I will see you tomorrow, Sect Leader Jiang,” Wen Ning says, after a while of silence.

Jiang Cheng flinches, then retracts his hand. “Come after dinner.”

“That’s too early. Do you need anything else?”

“Do you have a problem with the time?” Jiang Cheng glares at him.

“No, no! But somebody might see me if…”

“Alright. Come at the usual time,” Jiang Cheng stands, retrieving Zidian. He walks to the door, with his back to Wen Ning. “Good night.”

“G—Good night!” Wen Ning says in a panic just as the door closed.  _ He heard it, right? _

Jin Ling was in the Cloud Recesses, so he didn’t get the chance to hear about his father. Wen Ning was aware that he’d been listening to their conversation since the first night, but didn’t show signs of aggression. A sense of relief washes over him. If Young Master Jin heard them just now, what would he think?

Meanwhile, as Jiang Cheng walked in the hallway, he was tense. But he could only hold on to what Wen Ning said of his own accord. That he’d see him tomorrow. He leans on the wall, “Just now… what was that?” he murmurs, clutching his chest.

“Here,” Jiang Cheng opens the door. It was his own room, with his office.

Wen Ning was even more uncomfortable, being clueless as to why Jiang Cheng was behaving this way. Jiang Cheng gestures for him to sit down on a sofa and he does. “Thank you.”

Jiang Cheng sits down next to him. “What’s next?”

“Sect Leader Jiang… what I told you yesterday was the end,” Wen Ning says. It was true. He finished telling the remaining parts up to the present.

“I wasn’t talking about that. Tell me a story,” Jiang Cheng says, facing forward with his arm on the backrest.

“I am not good at telling stories. I do not know… any stories,” Wen Ning answers, getting that 'nervous' feeling again.

Jiang Cheng turns his head sideways, looking at him, “Then, make something up.”

“But… but I can’t just…” Wen Ning was at a loss. What does he intend to do?

But at the very least, Jiang Cheng's expression did not change in the slightest. He only leans to him, grasping Wen Ning's hand. He puts it on his chest, his eyes never looking away. “Do you feel it?”

“Feel what?” Wen Ning asks. If he wasn’t dead, he would’ve been blinking in surprise and confusion.

Right then, Jiang Cheng was obviously angered, “You don’t feel it?”

“I am a corpse,” Wen Ning says, a little too strongly because Jiang Cheng was being unreasonable.

“So what? You should know what you’re supposed to feel,” Jiang Cheng presses.

“How can I if I don’t feel anything?” Wen Ning says. But contrary to his expectations, he could somewhat… feel in a different way.  _ But how could I? When I wasn’t supposed to? _

“Then, imagine it!” Jiang Cheng's grip was forceful. “You felt sorry for Wei WuXian even though you were dead, so why can’t you feel anything towards me?”

“That was—"

“Enough!” Jiang Cheng drops his hand. He pushes him down. “Now, look at me.”

Wen Ning does as he was told, if it meant getting out of this awkward position. When he doesn’t speak, Jiang Cheng breathes sharply. “Do I look good?” he asks.

After a few moments, “Ah, yes! You are very handsome, Sect Leader Jiang,” Wen Ning nods frantically, after he learned what Jiang Cheng was trying to make him say.

A very pleased smile forms on Jiang Cheng's face, making Wen Ning's statement true to itself. It was then that Wen Ning 'felt' another kind of nervousness. He didn’t want to look away from Jiang Cheng's face and he didn’t want to leave. It was the first time since he saw Jiang Cheng cry that he did not want time to go faster.

“Say my name,” Jiang Cheng says, running his fingers through his hair.

“J—Jiang… Cheng…” Wen Ning forces his courtesy name out, thinking it would be rude if he actually called him by his birth name.

A flame seemed to be ignited in Jiang Cheng's eyes. Wen Ning closes his eyes in 'fear', thinking he’d done something wrong again. When he doesn’t hear any of Jiang Cheng's nasty demands, he opens his eyes, only to find somebody's lashes magnified so much that he could see them individually.

“Sect Leader Jiang?!” Wen Ning turns his head away, surprised.

But Jiang Cheng turns his face back, “Shut up,” he says against Wen Ning's lips, kissing him again.

He couldn’t understand what was going on. Controlling his force, he pushes Jiang Cheng's chest away. “I am a corpse!” he repeats. “Are you out of your mind?”

Jiang Cheng was pushed back but remained sitting on his lap. He didn’t look angry and wordlessly took off his top. Wen Ning was in a state of panic, wanting to throw Jiang Cheng off him but was afraid he’d hurt him.

His momentary distraction lets Jiang Cheng kiss him again, hands gripping both his wrists. Wen Ning didn’t exactly dislike it, but he couldn’t possibly let Jiang Cheng do these kinds of things to a corpse like him. He was afraid of the consequences it would bring upon Jiang Cheng.

“No…” he says hoarsely, against the lips that were attacking his.

“I know… you like me, too,” Jiang Cheng pulls away, his breathing disordered. “You said so yourself.”

Wen Ning could almost imagine his eyes growing wide if they could. “W—When… I did not say anything like that!”

“You said you liked it when I touch you. You said you were going to see me the day after. And now, you let me straddle you and even told me I’m handsome. I’m absolutely sure it all points to the same thing,” Jiang Cheng says quickly.

But that was because he was in a pinch! Because he had no choice!

Wen Ning, “Do you not understand? I am a corpse with no feelings.”

“You expect me to believe you?! When you said you’d look after the kids, does that not count? When you told me the truth about Wei WuXian, wasn’t it because you were sorry? And have you forgotten? You stayed when I cried! Because you FELT like you had to!” Jiang Cheng pants, his eyes full of sorrow.

They were both silent. Wen Ning says quietly, “We… can’t…”

Jiang Cheng calmly looks at him, before he gets off. Wen Ning sits up, about to feel relieved when he finds Zidian coiled tightly around him. Before he could speak, Jiang Cheng does, “If you can’t feel anything, I suppose I need to help you be able to,” he says, tugging at Zidian.

Wen Ning was pulled forward on his knees to the floor. Jiang Cheng pulls forcefully again, propping him to his feet and walks in the direction of the bed.

“You can’t do this!” Wen Ning protests.

“If you don’t want to, you can just kill me. But if you do that, it would be your fault that not only Jin Ling is parentless right now, but that he won’t have anyone by his side,” Jiang Cheng continues to tug at him.

“Is that a threat? Why are you doing this?! Let’s talk, please!” Wen Ning begs, knowing he could never leave a single scratch on Jiang Cheng because of guilt.

“The only way to get out of this is to kill me,” Jiang Cheng says in a chilly tone, “Save us both the trouble and stop resisting. We both like each other, so what’s wrong with this?”

“What’s wrong? I’m a corpse! If Young Master Jin found out, what would he think?!” Wen Ning was already by the bed.

“That brat doesn’t know anything. He shouldn’t meddle in adults' business,” Jiang Cheng gives Wen Ning's sash belt a few, firm tugs.

Wen Ning could still use his hands, so he holds his sash belt tight so Jiang Cheng could not untie it. “No. I don’t want to.”

“Yes, you want to,” Jiang Cheng changed his statement, not taking no for an answer. It was as if no matter what Wen Ning said, he would only listen to what he wanted to hear.

“Why are you being like this, Sect Leader Jiang?” Wen Ning's hands transfer to Jiang Cheng's. Holding them gently, as if trying to make a stubborn child understand, he carefully says, “Do you understand what position this would put you and Young Master Jin in? I beg you, Sect Leader Jiang…”

“Careful. You broke my arm once,” Jiang Cheng says calmly, dodging the question.

Wen Ning immediately drops his hands in surprise. “I—I didn’t mean—wait. Are you listening to me?”

His words fall on deaf ears. Jiang Cheng continues what he was doing, retracting Zidian. He pulls Wen Ning's sash belt in one swift tug, and it falls to the floor. Then, he immediately pulls down Wen Ning's robe exposing his shoulders.

“Sect Leader—" Wen Ning turns around and prepares to leap away but Jiang Cheng embraces him from behind, immobilizing him. Not that he couldn’t escape, but his priority makes him unable to do so, being 'never leave a scratch on Jiang Cheng'. If he leapt to get to the window, he would not only leave a large crater on the floor, but that he would be unable to fulfill his promise.

“Why?!” he yells at Wen Ning. “Why the hell are you trying so hard to get away from me?!”

If Wen Ning could cry, he'd long had wet the floor with his overflowing tears. “If I… put another one of you in danger…” he forces the words out, not able to continue.

But those simple words were enough for Jiang Cheng to see through him: he was the one who killed Jin ZiXuan. And never will he be able to forgive himself if he or Jin Ling would end up the same fate, either in his hands or the people awaiting the two's downfall.

Still, Jiang Cheng does not let go, turning Wen Ning to face him. Then, he looks into his eyes, “Then, tell me in words. Do you like me or not?”

Expecting some other questions about his escape or some more unreasonable remarks like he didn’t have the right to choose, Wen Ning was unprepared for what was thrown at him. If he said he didn’t like Jiang Cheng, he’d be lying. But if he said he did, who knows what the other would do?

Just as he quickly made a decision, choosing the first option, his slight delay puts a smile on Jiang Cheng's face, as though he already took that delay as an affirmation. The next thing he went for was Wen Ning's trousers.

“No, no, no! I don’t like you!” Wen Ning grasps his shoulders, as gently as he could, as if his last minute answer could still save them from the mistake they were about to do.

“Liar,” Jiang Cheng hisses, brushing off his hands. “You dare lie to me, and I won’t be gentle no matter how much you beg.”

“You don’t understand!” Wen Ning reasons out. “You’re also forcing me to do things! You’re not giving me—"

“It is not me who does not understand!” Jiang Cheng shouts. “You’re the one… who doesn’t understand…”

The words that were about to come out of Wen Ning's were halted by the sight before him. Jiang Cheng does not look away, even as his sight was already so blurry. His hands were trembling as they squeeze the other's shoulders.

“You don’t understand…” he says, his voice so soft one had to listen carefully. “I already messed up once… I’m not about to do it again…” he collapses on his knees, his tears dotting the ground. His voice hoarse, he repeats, “I will not do it again.”

Wen Ning pulls him up, making him sit on the bed. After he does, he fixes his robe, pulling it over his shoulders again. Although Jiang Cheng's words leave him questions, he knew he wasn’t in the position to satisfy his curiosity. He wordlessly dabs his sleeve onto Jiang Cheng's face, while the latter sniffles quietly, his eyes to his side, refusing to look at him.

As he looked at Jiang Cheng's face tilted slightly to the side, filled with sorrow and what could be described as 'sulking', he burns the image in his memory, before standing and turning around once more. As he thought about it, he indeed wonder why this was so hard… even though he was a corpse. But that was exactly what made it so… because he was a corpse that he can’t let Jiang Cheng love him.

“One more step and you’ll end up in the dungeon,” Jiang Cheng says, his voice trembling beneath the fear it imposes.

Wen Ning fights the urge to stop. But he does, looking over his shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

“You don’t have to be sorry! All you have to do is stay with me!” Jiang Cheng exclaims, forcing the choice on him as his way of persuading him. Like he was so desperate for Wen Ning to just trust him and leave everything else behind.

He snatches Wen Ning's hand and pulls it with force that Wen Ning was forced backwards. He catches the falling body, supporting it so they both do not collapse on the bed. Wen Ning was 'shocked', finding himself sitting on Jiang Cheng's lap. When he tries to get up, Jiang Cheng locks an arm around his waist, his other across his chest. “Just… I promise we won’t run into each other again!” Wen Ning puts his hands on Jiang Cheng's arms, trying to peel them open.

“That’s exactly what I don’t want to happen!” Jiang Cheng puts all his strength into keeping him in place.

“You’re being unreasonable, Sect Leader Jiang!”

“Say whatever you want. I told you the only way out is to kill me!” Jiang Cheng pulls him down on the bed. Then, he rolls over so he was on top. “I let you tell me stories every night. It’s your turn to listen to mine.”

“I do not want to hear it!” Wen Ning controls his force, trying to push off Jiang Cheng who puts his weight completely on him.

Jiang Cheng starts quickly, “There was once a boy who became a sect leader at such a young age after suffering through so much with the lost of his parents and annihilation of his sect. Just as he thought everything was fine, his best friend had to defect from his sect after he just rebuilt it, to protect the remnants of the sect that brought upon its destruction. He knew they were innocent, but what can he do? Defy the will of countless sects that prey upon the mistake of others? The lives of the people in the sect he rebuilt, as well as his sister's rest upon his shoulders, his decision. He had to choose—"

Wen Ning writhes under him, sensing that the next words he might hear will stop him from leaving. He had to get away.

Jiang Cheng slams both Wen Ning's wrists against the mattress, screaming, “Listen to me!”

“No…” Wen Ning shrinks back, seemingly terrified at how Jiang Cheng's face turned ugly out of rage.

“He knew what he had to do. He told his best friend that he wouldn’t be in the right even if he was. In the name of his sect and his sister, in order to protect them, he turned his back on his best friend. And when his sister died, he had to hate him, blaming him for choosing the ghostly path when he could’ve just returned to the right path, not knowing that he couldn’t!”

Still struggling, Wen Ning turns his head away, as if doing so would let him hear less. Jiang Cheng snorts at his poor attempt. He continues, “He thought everything he did was right. Not until somebody had to let him know about the things he never knew even when 13 years had passed since his best friend’s death. He would’ve never known in two lifetimes if nobody told him.”

Drops of tears fall again on Wen Ning's exposed right cheek. Wen Ning slowly looks to him again, seeing the pain Jiang Cheng had been enduring all this time. He stops momentarily, overcome by the need to let him finish, now that he listened this far.

“I kept saying he left me for the Wens… when I could’ve also stayed with him… when I should’ve convinced the others that those Wens were innocent. In the end, all I did was nothing. If I did, maybe he wouldn’t have been cornered like this.”

“That was… none of your fault,” Wen Ning says slowly, hoping his words would cease the other's guilt that he had anything to do with the massacre of his family.

“I refused to listen to you… but I really know why you don’t want to be with me,” Jiang Cheng sniffles, weakly smiling.

“Wh—What are you saying?” Wen Ning was perplexed, as to how this matter just came out of nowhere.

“I refused to help those who saved my life once. If I just… if I spoke up for all of you, maybe your family didn’t have to die. If I sought after you before you fell in somebody else's hands… if only I found you before they did… you might still be alive right now…” Jiang Cheng forces the last phrase out.

Wen Ning feels some sort of emotion explode inside him, despite the hole in his chest. The next thing he does changes the expression on the other's face. “What happened to us was nobody's fault, Sect Leader Jiang. And… I’m right here now. In front of you.”

Jiang Cheng's eyes grow wide, not because of what he was seeing as his sight was too blurry with tears, but because of the cold hand on his left cheek. “You?!”

“It is not because I do not want to be with you. I never thought of getting away from you because I want to—"

He doesn’t finish when Jiang Cheng sweeps off his tears once and lowers his face to him, nose touching nose. Wen Ning purses his lips tightly, unsure of what to do. It wasn’t long before the silence was broken again, “I knew you like me,” Jiang Cheng says, brushing his lips lightly on Wen Ning's.

He couldn’t deny it any longer, “Y—Yes, Sect Leader Jiang. I do,” he answers hesitantly.

The gloomy atmosphere was replaced by joy. Jiang Cheng grins, “I said I’ll help you be able to feel again, did I not?”

“You did,” Wen Ning replies, his voice very soft.

Jiang Cheng could almost imagine him blush. He rakes his fingers through Wen Ning's hair. Not having the patience to say anything more, he looks once into the other's eyes, before pressing his lips onto Wen Ning's.

They kiss for some time, before Jiang Cheng pushes Wen Ning's robe off his shoulders again, roughly and urgently. Wen Ning puts his hands on Jiang Cheng's trousers, tugging at it to come off. When he was too slow, Jiang Cheng gets off him to do it himself, then went for Wen Ning's, pulling it off him while he was lying on the bed.

Completely naked, Jiang Cheng fixes their position, hovering above him. Then, he lowers his face, kissing him once again. Wen Ning loops his arms around Jiang Cheng's neck, enjoying the kiss even though there was no way he should’ve been. It was as if he finally turned human… because he confessed his true feelings that he had been denying.

As they kiss, a knee parts his legs, followed by a pair of hands spreading them even wider. Jiang Cheng settles in between. He searches for Wen Ning's hand with his, leading it lower and lower until it touches a long, hard object. Jiang Cheng whispers against his lips, “Touch me.”

Wen Ning looks down, seeing Jiang Cheng's erection begging for attention. By instinct, he wraps his fingers around it. Instantly, the breaths by his ear become rougher, accompanied by subtle moans that became grunts and groans.

“Does it hurt?” Wen Ning asks, kissing Jiang Cheng's cheek as compensation. But he didn’t stop.

“Aahh… mmn…” Jiang Cheng could not answer anymore. He wraps his hand around Wen Ning's, applying more pressure and increasing speed, teaching him what to do.

Wen Ning was overwhelmed with the face Jiang Cheng was making. His eyes trained on Wen Ning were fighting to keep open, his cheeks flushed, his mouth a little agape, erotic sounds escaping from it. He was so handsome and vulnerable that he acted before thinking, kissing at every area of that beautiful face. He lets Jiang Cheng's hand manipulate his, but a sudden reflex of his thumb accidentally touched the tip of the member, just as Jiang Cheng's hand was adjusting and putting pressure on his.

“Aaah!” a low and deep moan escapes Jiang Cheng's mouth while a viscous, white fluid spurts out of his member.

“Sect Leader?” Wen Ning mumbles.

Jiang Cheng, catching his breath, sits on his legs, while his hands pin down Wen Ning's legs far apart. His eyes blank, as if he was possessed, he holds his member at the entrance, pushing and forcing it inside.

Wen Ning was bewildered. “S—Sect Leader Jiang… what is… what—" he couldn’t put it into words. He didn’t get a chance to experience dating or anything romantic when he was alive, so he barely had knowledge about the matter, let alone how two men do it. He wanted to ask, since what Jiang Cheng was doing looks a little weird.

Jiang Cheng, knowing Wen Ning wouldn’t feel pain, didn’t even bother taking it slow. Likewise, he didn’t have much when it comes to doing it with men, but he did know a lot, with Wei WuXian being his partner-in-crime. He only got curious about cut-sleeves because of Wei WuXian and Lan WangJi. He was disgusted at first. But everything was reversed when he realized the one he fell for was a man and so, in a random day, he asked a random person if it was possible between men. Even though that random guy's eyes almost bulged out of their sockets at his own sect leader, he still answered him but with awkwardness, 'where'. With that piece of information, Jiang Cheng knew what he had to do, the location being the only difference. He wasn’t an amateur.

With effort, he sends it all inside. As foreseen, Wen Ning doesn’t show any signs of pain. He moves almost instantly, making the bed creak and shake disturbingly. He kisses Wen Ning, his force uncontrolled. But it was sloppy, because every time he thrusts, an uncontrollable gasp interrupts it.

Wen Ning squeezes Jiang Cheng's hips by constricting his legs around him, sending forth another wave of pleasure for the latter who in turn, grants him with even rougher, more powerful thrusts. Even though he could feel in a different way inside his head, aroused as well, because he was a corpse, he didn’t have an erection like Jiang Cheng. Worried about some misconceptions it’d bring him not being able to enjoy or feel it, he moves his hips as well, and he finds out how much he likes it too.

Compared to Wen Ning's shy voice full of restraint and embarrassment, Jiang Cheng's deep and urgent groans make up the majority of the noise in the room, not even holding back. And it grew even noisier when Wen Ning actively participated, doing his part.

“Haah… aah!” Jiang Cheng moans, his expression lost in pleasure, as they moved in unison. Wen Ning's buttocks lift a bit, his body pushed forward an inch every time Jiang Cheng thrusts.

“Mmn…” Wen Ning bites his lip, his moans muffled.

Sweat drips off Jiang Cheng's chin and the tips of his bangs onto Wen Ning's neck and face. The sight of Wen Ning holding himself back darkens Jiang Cheng's thoughts. Like a drop of ink in clear water, he imagines an erotic Wen Ning, begging and writhing under his every touch for more. And to make his fantasy a reality, he skims over some of the pages of the picture books he remembered inside his head, starting from the most daring ones.

“A—aa—aahh…” Wen Ning moans softly, his hands lightly latched to the curves of Jiang Cheng's shoulders, afraid of even leaving a mark.

Jiang Cheng embraces Wen Ning, almost crushing him with his weight on the bed as he moves his hips in a steady rhythm, still consulting his memories, unable to decide where to start. But since they were not in a hurry, Jiang Cheng thought, It might be good to start with the least and let things escalate from there.

Wen Ning kisses Jiang Cheng, his actions gentle. While he was oblivious to the sinister thoughts that Jiang Cheng was trying out in his head, he was suddenly lifted, and Jiang Cheng was plunged even deeper inside him.

Letting Wen Ning sit on his lap, Jiang Cheng puts an arm around his wait to secure him in place, and the palm of his free one a little behind him on the bed. Then, using it to support himself, he thrusts his hips upwards, with unbelievable strength.

The bed ends up the same fate as Wen Ning, shifting back and forth a centimeter or two, the noise it was making almost telling them that any more and it'd break.

“S—Sect Leader… mmn… slow down…” Wen Ning pleads, apparently disturbed by the noise.

But Jiang Cheng was not in the mood to listen or comprehend what Wen Ning meant as he simply responds with difficulty, “I… told you… I will not… be gentle…”

A surge of an inexplicable feeling washes over Wen Ning, though he did not understand why, but he thought he was glad he was a corpse.

“Aah… the bed… somebody might hear…!” Wen Ning takes a quick glance at the door.

Earlier, Jiang Cheng gave strict instructions to desert the area around his office until the morning after. There was no way anyone would hear, unless somebody sneaks up on them.

Frowning, Jiang Cheng momentarily slows down, “Another word about anything else and see what happens to you.”

Although he successfully stirred Wen Ning's attention back to him, his supposed warning suddenly became a punishment, without the promise of another offense that would only make it effective. He forces Wen Ning down on the bed again, lifting both legs over his shoulders, not caring about going against his own word.

Wen Ning didn’t have the time to react, his mouth covered by Jiang Cheng's before it had the chance to expose what he did. A tongue already intruding inside, he could only accept it and hope that that door would not open, especially with Jiang Cheng having no plan to tone down as his movements only become fiercer.

It was then that Jiang Cheng's breath hitches, his fingers curling tightly into a fist as his whole body trembled. He had released. Wanting more of the interrupted kiss, he continues, while trying to regain some stamina before continuing. He sucks and bites Wen Ning's lips, and as if it was not enough, he bites his chin as well. It was not long before the noises in the room come to life again.

“I… I lo—I…” Wen Ning was struggling to speak, every word cut short by Jiang Cheng's rough motions.

Jiang Cheng's eyes grow wide, realizing what Wen Ning was trying to tell him. Immediately, he swallows Wen Ning's words before he could hear them, his lips forceful and trembling at the same time. Though it was confusing on Wen Ning's part, he accepts the kiss and everything Jiang Cheng was willing to give. In exchange, he puts his faith in him, giving him some more time.

A tear makes its way down Jiang Cheng's face but Wen Ning doesn’t notice. He momentarily opens his eyes before closing them again, He may be a fierce corpse, but he did not lose his kindness even in death. He wanted to hear the words, but decided he wasn’t worthy of hearing them directly yet. He could not imagine saying such things himself, given how he grew up. He could not even bring himself to tell his nephew some encouraging words other than ‘don’t worry' because he finds some of them awkward. If he could not reciprocate the gesture, he thought he should not receive it yet.

After roughly trying all sorts of positions they could with Jiang Cheng's lead, ranging from Wen Ning on his back, stomach or sitting on him and whatnot, they fall back to the original one when Jiang Cheng's strength was running out. Finally, Jiang Cheng eases himself off Wen Ning, panting and slightly trembling after releasing inside him several times. He collapses beside Wen Ning, then pulls him to his chest, hugging him tightly.

Finally coming to his senses, he was a little sorry and shameful that even in bed, his first time, he lashed out like that. Closing his eyes and reflecting upon what he did, he was partly thankful Wen Ning was a corpse, If he wasn’t a corpse, would he have survived all that? Jiang Cheng shakes the thought out of his mind.

“Sect Leader…” Wen Ning says, his voice shy and timid.

“This time, you will not tell me you didn’t feel anything,” Jiang Cheng says, his tone commanding. “Whether you like it or not, you will stay with me until I die.”

“But… Young Master Jin might not take this too well,” Wen Ning says, quietly.

“Why are you still worried about that brat?” Jiang Cheng's tone was enough for Wen Ning to imagine what kind of expression he was making, given how his sight was temporarily impaired due to his head being pressed to the other's chest.

“I… don’t want him… to hate me,” Wen Ning says slowly.

Jiang Cheng's embrace loosens slightly. It was true that he could stop Jin Ling from attacking Wen Ning if the situation presents itself. But what Wen Ning wanted wasn’t something he could just force onto Jin Ling. He can’t force someone's feelings.

“I will tell him after I let him settle things,” Jiang Cheng says, his tone cold in contrast to his kind intentions.

“Settle things?” Wen Ning looks up.

Seeing Wen Ning's face, Jiang Cheng's heart thumps, his cheeks growing hotter. Clearing his throat, he says, “He’d been acting strange. He was suddenly nice… only to ask me to study in the Cloud Recesses.”

“I am aware of that. Does that not mean he made friends with the disciples there?” Wen Ning asks, “Maybe Young Master Lan SiZhui and Young Master Lan JingYi in particular?”

Jiang Cheng ponders for a few moments. The two looked similar but if he saw them in person again, he would be able to tell which one was the funny one. After not seeing them for a long time, he was close to forgetting their faces. But what bothers him about Jin Ling was something that he couldn’t explain. Due to his priorities and how this matter seemed harmless, he disregards it, wanting to focus more on Wen Ning. “Fine. I understand he needs friends.”

“Right,” Wen Ning nods, as if he was talking to himself.

Jiang Cheng searches for Wen Ning's hand with his, grasping it tightly. Then, he pulls Wen Ning's head tighter to his chest, using the hand that was hooked underneath him. “Hmm…” he sighs in satisfaction.

“Um… Sect Leader Jiang?” Wen Ning says in a panic. “I… I should go. It is already late.” Very late. It was almost one in the morning.

Jiang Cheng holds him tighter, “You are not going anywhere.”

“But—"

“If I can’t defend someone important to me, where does that put me? I will protect you and Jin Ling no matter what. This time… I’ll fight for you.”

Wen Ning feels a sudden bout of shyness, accompanied with happiness and determination, “I’ll protect you and Jin Ling, too.” Then, he adds after a minute, “But I’m not ready to be seen yet.”

Until he figures out how exactly he could protect both, he wanted to prolong the stage where no one knew. The period where Jiang Cheng and Jin Ling can roam freely without his protection.

Jiang Cheng looks down at him. “Alright.”

“Thank you, Sect—"

“In case you don’t know, my birth name is Jiang WanYin.”

“I do know that…” Wen Ning chuckles slightly, finding it funny that Jiang Cheng chose to introduce himself at such a time. After all, introducing the name of the dish after it was already eaten did sound silly.

Jiang Cheng's brows scrunch, “Then, why the hell are you still calling me that?”

“Y—You didn’t give me permission…”

“Between lovers, permission is not needed for such things.”

Silence followed shortly. Then, Jiang Cheng shifts, adjusting Wen Ning in his arms so he could face him with their heads at level with each other.

“How was… living at the Burial Mounds?” he asks.

“You should sleep, Sect—Jiang Cheng,” Wen Ning corrects himself.

Jiang Cheng frowns, “Get rid of that 'Sect Leader' first. You sound like my subordinates. I let you off when you skipped that part, so tell me or I won’t be able to sleep—"

“A-Cheng, bad boy,” Wen Ning pokes the tip of Jiang Cheng's nose with a tone that of feigned chiding.

Jiang Cheng's face flush bright red. He did not expect things to progress this quickly… for Wen Ning to suddenly be out of character. “W—What did you just call me?” he mumbles.

“A-Cheng,” Wen Ning repeats.

“You…” Jiang Cheng hovers his face above Wen Ning's.

It was Wen Ning's turn to panic, a rain of kisses fell all over his face. “W—Wait! You’ve got w—work tomorrow!” he blurts out, hoping the mention of work would save him from another round.

“Right,” Jiang Cheng says, laying back reluctantly. “Tell me… tomorrow. How you people lived in the Burial Mounds.”

“Alright,” Wen Ning agrees, kissing Jiang Cheng one last time before he drifts off to sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all for reading ♡


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